Gaseous fukl and process of producing same



Jul 8 1924. 11500594 J .R. ROSE" GASEOUS FUEL AND PROCESSOYF'I-PRODUCINQSAME Fil-ed Aug. 1:5. 1917 2 sheets-slu INVENTOR. 4

' ATTORNEYS.

- 1.500594 v J. RROSE I GASEO US FUEL AND PROCESS OF PRODUCING SAMEFiled Aug 13, 1917' 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 i! e W w N I I INVENTOR.

1 ATTORNEYS.

Patented July 8, 192 1.

. JAMES R. ROSE, OF EDGEWORTH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR' TO CARBO-OXYGENCOMPANY, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

GASEOUS FUEL AND rnocnss' or raonucrive seam Application filed August13, 1917, Serial 1Y0. 185,977.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES R. Rose, a citizen of the United States,residing at Edgeworth, in the county of Allegheny and State 1 5 ofPennsylvania, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inGaseous Fuel and Processes of Producing Same, of which the following isa full, clear, and exact description, reference being had tothe.accompanying drawings. 1 i

This invention relates to a process for the manufacture of gaseous fuel,and more particularly to a process for the production of such fuel as isparticularly well adapted for the cutting and welding art, also to anewgas for use in such art. The general object of.

the invention is to produce a fuel Which shall be more eflicient thanthose which have been "employed heretofore for this purpose and onewhich may contain desirable proportions of the higher and richer membersof the hydrocarbon series as well as a certain amount of carbonmonoxide.

Further and more generally stated, the invention may be defined asconsisting of the combinations of steps embodied in the claims heretoattached and forming part hereof.

The process is conveniently realized in and throughthe apparatusillustrated in the drawings, wherein Fig. 1 represents a longitudinalvertical sectional view through such apparatus; Fig. 2 a view, partly insection and partly in plan, of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1, thesection being taken just 85 below the chamber 5 of the generator; andFig. 3 a detail in elevation of one of-the pieces of refractory materialwithin the generator. v in Y Describing byreference characters the va- Mrious parts illustrated herein, 1 denotes the outer shell and 2the'refractory lining of a generator, the generator being shown ascyindrical. This refractory lining may be of any suitable well-knownmaterial, and the 65 generator is so constructed as to provide a frontflue 3 and a rear-flue 4.- communicating.

- at their upper ends by a transverse passage way 5, said passagewaybeing formed within the said lining .and filler. Refractory porousmaterial 2 is arranged in checkerwork formation within'the flues 3 and4.

It will be observed that the bottoms of the lines 3 and 4, are locatedat a distance above plied through the connection 9) may ample thicknessof refractory material 2 is provided below such flues.

6 denotes a partition, preferably of sheet steel, extending transverselyacross the gen erator between the flues 3 and 4 and extending from thebottom of the generator upwardly to a distance below the top of therefractory dividing wall 2. This partition prevents seepage of gasesfrom the flue on one side thereof to the flue on the oppositeside'thereof. 7 denotes. an inlet connection communicating with thefront or charging wall of the generator and discharging into the bottomof the flue 3. This connection is provided at its outer end with a gatevalve 8 and is extended, as indicated at 9, to a suitable air blower(not shown). 10 denotes a nozzle through which a suitable preheatingfluid (such as hydro en, or natural gas, or a mixture of the same mixedwith airb(supe 1ntroduced into the bottom of the flue 3 beneath theambit". This nozzle preferably extends axially into the connection 7 andis adapted to receive the gaseous fuel from the pipes 11 and 11respectively, each of said pipes having a valve, indicated at 11 and 11res ec-tivel H dro en may be supplied by'the pipe 11 and natu ral gasthrough the pipe 11. The hydrogen and natural gas are admittedseparately to form the mixture to be treated.

The flues 3 and 4 are provided each with a checker-work filling ofporous refractory material, referred to hereinbefore and lndicated at2', while the transverse flue 5 is provided with'an outlet connection 12having a weighted blow-off or pressure-relief valve therein, theoperating handle whereof is indicated at 13. From the arch 4* at thebottom of the flue 4, there extends an outlet flue 14 the discharge endof which projects into areceptacle 15, the lower end 14 of such fluebeing sealed by suitable liquid. withinthe said receptacle. Projectingupwardly from the outlet flue 14 is a pipe 16 having a pressure-relief.valve therein similar to the valve, in the pipe 12, the operating handleof the valve being indicated at 17.

From the top of the receptacle 15, andi having its inlet end above theliquid therein, extends a pipe 18 which communicates with the bottom ofthe scrubbing tank 19, having a series of transverse, perforatedpartitions 20 therein with suitable porous material 21, such as pumicestone, on said partitions and a spraying nozzle 22 in the upper endthereof above the uppermost partition and the point-of use. From thefront of the furnace 1. there project pipes or connections 26 whichprovide means for applying pyrometers to' the flue 3 or for theapplication of instruments for estimating the temperature byobservation, as by a color test. In operation,

the hydrogen or natural gas or a vmixture of the same, will beintroduced into the bottom of the flue 3 from the pipes 11 and 11together with an excess of air admitted through the connections 7 and 9.This mixture, being ignited, burns in contact with the refractorymaterial 2 in the .fiues 3 and 4 until the desired temperature (notmaterially lower than 1600 is attained, as indicated by' the pyrometersor sight tubes. The products of combustion resulting from thispreheating operation will escape through the upper end of'the pipe 16,the valve being opened or lifted by its handle 17 for the purpose offacilitating the discharge of such gases.

After the blowing-up or preheating opcration. hydrogen and natural gasare sup plied to the generator and are there subjected to a temperaturenot materially lower than 1600 F. The temperature will be sufficient todissociate the natural gas into carbon and hydrogen in a nascentcondition,

and a recombination will beefiectedwhereby the resultant fixed gasdischarged from the generator will contain a higher proportion ofhydrogen and a lowerpercentage of methane than were supplied through theconnection 7. together with free carbon and a small proportionof carbonmonoxide. In general. the higher the temperature, the higher will bethefproportion of the hydrogen and the lower the proportion of themethane constituent of the resultant gas. At a temperature of 2200 F.the gas discharged from the generator will contain about 85 per cent ofhydrogen and from 13 to 14 per cent of methane, together'with from 1 to2 per cent of carbon monoxide, which is .pro- 'duced by the combinationof some of the carbon constituent of the-dissociated natural gas withoxygen occluded within the pores of thelrefractory materialfromthepreheat ing operation. the oxygen being taken from the excess airsupplied with the gaseous I fuel during the preheating operation. the

temperature of'the generator is lower than 2200 F., the proportion ofhydrogen in the final gas Will be lower and the proportion of methanehigher than at such temperature; on the other hand, if the temperatureto which the gases are subjected be increased,

the proportion of methane will be diminished and the proportion ofhydrogen increased. The resultant gas, however, will contain hydrogen,methane, and carbon monoxide, and will be fixed and permanent at atemperature of at least below zero F., and under a pressure of 1800pounds.

The gas which has been produced within the generator is conductedthrough the re-- ceptacle 15, which will trap the solid carbon producedby the dissociationof the natural gas; theme the gas may be conductedthrough the scrubbing tank 19 and thence I to the enriching tank 24.

The hydrocarbon liquid in the tank 94 may be benzene, naphthalene, orany other volatile hydrocarbon of a sufiiciently high series, and theresultant fluid will not separate or stratify when stored underpressure.

It is to be observed that,.by the dissociation of' the natural gas inthe presence of the refractory material, the resultant fixed gascontains hydrogen and methane in different proportions from those in'which hydrogen and natural gas were supplied to said material and thatthe resultant gas contains in addition a small but valuable proportionof carbon monoxide. in. the form of lamp black may be recovered from thereceptacle 15.

Having thus described my invention, whatI claim is c I 1.' The processof producing gaseous'fuel which comprises subjecting a mixture ofhydrogen and natural gas to a temperature sufiicient to dissociate thenatural gas, and subjecting. the resultant mixture to a be perature notmaterially lower than 1600 F. in the presence of oxygen. 1

The carbon,

which comprises subjecting a mixture of hvdrogenand natural gas admittedseparately to a chamber containing porous refractory 1'16- materialheated to a temperature not materially lower than 1600 F.

3. The process of producing gaseous fuel.

. 110 2. The process of producing gaseous fuel "gen in the pores thereofand heated to a temperature not materially lower than action of porousrefractory material containing oxygen in the pores thereof and he ated'to a tem perature not materially lower than 1600 F.,

and removing from the resultant gas free 1 carbon caused by thedissociation of the natural gas.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto afiix my signature.

% S R. ROSE.

